More than a beach city in the south of Spain…read more Yes, it does have 16 beaches, one in the city center. But does offer way more than lazy sunny days relaxing on the beach. It is the birthplace of Pablo Picasso. And full of various cultural sites. I suggest an early morning hike up to Gibralfaro Castle, as the path is not fully shaded and the line for entry can get long. It is one of the largest Arab fortresses in the area. From here you can look out to the Mediterranean, the historic old city and Plaza de Toro de la Malagueta bull ring. On the back side back down in the city is a fabulously preserved Roman theater, the city museum, and the Cathedral de la Encarnation. The entire day can be spent wandering this great old area, with a few stops at small cafes for a snack and occasional coffee or sangria. Food and drink here are affordable and delicious. For unique and incredible fresh grilled seafood, head back down to the beach and enjoy the grilled sardines on skewers.

Quality/Quantity - A must visit. A highlight for Malaga, Spain. See all my pictures, well I think I…read moream missing like 100 pictures... Also, see my Yelp review for Castillo de Gibralfaro for more pictures. Bring your walking shoes. A fun historic visit. Ambiance - Decent size location. Historic and some beautiful views. Street vendors as you walk up to the location. Street performers, he was actually pretty good, we tipped. Clean restrooms, but possible long lines. We decided to walk, but you can take public transportation, ride share, etc. Cafe & bar available. We got her early, so there were almost no customers. Kid, school tour friendly. Seasonal hours. 9am to 10pm daily during the summer. Winter 9am to 6pm daily. Open year round. Expect to spend 1.5 hours here. Service - Self service, a self service kiosk to pay. Price - 7 Euros, $8 US per person. Discounted when you buy the ticket for both places.10 Euros, $11.50 US. And more importantly, you get to cut the line!! But not well signed. Glad we asked. Guided tours available for $$; see their website. Owner Comment - Congrats on all your success since the 15th century.

This is a nice fort to visit! If you have visited others across Andalusia, it is not nearly as…read moreintricate as the Alhambra, but is still beautiful and grand. The location also offers gorgeous views of the harbor, Mediterranean sea, and the bull ring. There is an accessible entrance for anyone visiting with kids in strollers or a relative in a wheelchair. Free on Sundays after 2p!

Last weekend I was in Malaga and, while I was having breakfast on the terrasse of a café, a woman…read moredistributed flyers. I usually don't take flyers. But here I was in Spain so maybe flyers were interesting. And it was ! After wandering through the beautiful city, we found the place. hidden in the patio of an old building. Away from the sun, we felt some fresh air and walk in the craft market. I just love so much how it feels to walk from table to table and admire craft ! It feels so personal. Someone made something and you are about to acquire a unique piece of Art ! We sat for a while, drank a coke. Loved it I highly recommend the place and the market :)

Seriously cool place to have a beer!…read more We walked past this place one day while walking off the beaten path. we made a mental note to come back for for a few beers. So we came back for a few beers. And cheap mind you. You won't break the bank here. Doesn't feel very touristy, felt more like a place where locals hang. And had a arty farty vibe. I saw a bloke sitting at a table on his own reading a book and drinking a beer. I love feel of this place. It's set back off the road into a giant garden patio. I think they hold lots of events here. I saw a list of events, but didn't really pay much attention. I think I may wind up a regular here!

Puente Viejo is a bridge as you'd have guessed, the oldest one built in Ronda in 1616. Easy to…read moreremember. It's very easy to find, like everything else in Ronda, just grab a map - a self guided walking tour and follow the main drag. Everything is close by, within walking distance. The bridge is old, beautiful, take a break for a while to take all the details in and the amazing views all around! Roman bridge with some Moorish influences, a great example of Andalusian architecture. Pedestrian only, a wonderful sight!

The Puente Viejo (old bridge) in Ronda, was built on remains of an older bridge. According to…read moreSpanish touring sites, this version of the bridge was built in the 16thC, however, Wikipedia claims it was built in 1616 (the year of Shakespeare's death). I would tend to go with the Spanish info, dating it to the 1500s. The more famous Puente Nuevo (new bridge) is a "young" 200+ years old. While Puente Nuevo allows vehicular traffic, Puente Viejo is a pedestrian-only bridge. It is accessible from lower points in town, down the hill from the Palacio del Rey Moro, on the old side of the city, and near Iglesia de Padre Jesús on the new side. This bridge has great views, but, IMO, not as dramatic as those from Puente Nuevo. Puente Viejo is in Carlos Saura's film version of Carmen (1983). Los Caños bar, nearby, shows photo stills from the movie. * * * TIP * * * Near the old bridge, there is an entrance to walk the INTERIOR of the city walls, to see these old ramparts from the inside. Ask for more info from your hotel, because this is not of widespread tourist knowledge.

Quality/Quantity - A must visit. A highlight for Malaga, Spain. See all my pictures, well I think I…read moream missing like 100 pictures... Also, see my Yelp review for Alcazaba for more pictures. Bring your walking shoes. A fun historic visit. Ambiance - Decent size location. Historic and some beautiful views. Street vendors as you walk up to the location. Street performers, but he was actually pretty good, we tipped. Clean restrooms, but possible long lines. We decided to walk up, but you can take public transportation, ride share, etc. Cafe, bar available. Fairly busy. Kid, school tour friendly. Seasonal hours: 9am to 10pm daily during the Summer. Winter hours: 9am to 6pm daily. Cut and pasted from their website: Total area: 21,310 m² (including the Coracha and the Barbican). Walls: 1,310 meters in perimeter. Inner enclosure: 12,630 m² enclosed by 733 meters of wall, with 30 sections and 8 towers, most of them solid. Service - Self service, including the self service kiosk to pay. Price - 7 Euros, $8 US per person. Discounted when you buy the ticket for both places. 10 Euros, $11.50 US. And more importantly, you get to cut the line!! But not well signed. Glad we asked. Guided tours available for $$; see their website. Owner Comment - Congrats on all your success.

Best 360 views of Malaga! It is ~20-minute walk uphill without pausing so do wear comfortable…read moreshoes, bring water, and take caution if you have mobility concerns. The walk up to the castle offers very nice views of the city. The paid portion gives entry into the walled complex at the top and is ~3€. The complex itself is mostly just the walls, which you can walk around all sides of and get stunning views of the city, harbor/sea, and mountains. The grounds contain a few information cards. One terrace had been turned into a cafe, so there really isn't much beyond completing the wall walk. Some of the views are identical to the Alcazaba too (at least on the sea-facing side and old town), so definitely go there if you have mobility concerns and are unable to hike this far up. Got very pleasant weather when I went so I lucked out. Worth a visit!

The Roman Theatre was my last stop of all the sight seeing and albeit not a lot to see, it is the…read moreperfect spot for relaxing after a tiring hike up the castle. Here you can lay down and soak up the sun, watch as the locals/tourists go about their their in Malaga or even catch up with friends and family. If you're a solo traveller like me, it's a good place to just relax... It is located to the front of the Castle facing the Leonardo Di Vinci Museum (which I sadly couldn't go into that day).

A wonderful exhibition that details what it was like to go to the theatre in Roman days. You visit…read morethe artifacts before you go into the Alcazaba. There is also a glass pyramid in front that you can look down into and see some of the ruins in progress. Pretty cool to see.

Spain does a great job with their cruise ports…read more They are usually in the heart of the city, making it so easy to walk ashore on your own and enjoy. Malaga is no different. It was a bit of a walk from the ship to the beach and the city, but the view was spectacular. The Mediterranean Sea to your right and the commanding Castillo de Gibralfaro ahead perched on the bluff. At the entrance of the port was a huge city map. I snapped a picture of it to help me as I wandered the city. If you are not into wandering, a gorgeous massive public beach is right there at the entrance. Also for shopper and dinners, a long marina facing mall is to the left. Enjoy local foods or dishes from around the world here. A complete shopping center for the spenders.

It is a beautiful and big harbour area to walk along and we've watched it grow and develop over the…read morelast 7 years from almost nothing and for this alone it's a five star experience. The sad fact is though that it has been populated by over-priced 'craft' stalls, restaurants and fast food outlets: you can pay £3 for a small ice cream cone, over £5 for a small sundae and £2.25 for a small coffee and dunkin donut where you can sit uncomfortably on plastic seats. This brings it to three stars. It is not a surprise that the main concentration of these over priced 'craft' stalls and eateries is at the side where the mega ships dock, but what is unwelcome is this is the only side where you'll find toilets; if you walk further round the harbour and it's at the very least a kilometre, you leave the toilet facilities behind. How on earth can someone design a huge tourist area with toilets on only one corner on just one side. There's no greater turn off for many people to feel as if they are being ripped off in these 'craft' and eating places and they are. As we walked along we tried to get WiFi from some of the vendors (Dunkin Donuts who have re imaged to just Dunkin and BurgerKing) both claimed their WiFi wasn't working. We were here 6 months ago and it was the same excuse in both places then too so they appear to have no intention of spending the money to get the WiFi to work. If you are exploring this scenically beautiful port and harbour I'd suggest you take a picnic and aim to go to the 'toilet' side but do be aware there's not many 'free' seats to rest up as most seating is at the restaurants.

Entered the Plaza after walking down the backside of the Gibralfaro Castle,…read more The Plaza de la Merced is the public square located in central Málaga. It dates back to the Romans and the market place since the 15th century, hence the name, mercado- market. Here is a statue of Pablo Picasso, since his childhood home is at number 15 in the plaza. The house is now a museum and headquarters of the Pablo Ruiz Picasso Foundation. There is also a statue of General Riego, it honors him and 48 of his friends who killed by orders of Ferdinand VII for their part in the 1820 uprising. At the time of my visit in 2024, there were not many trees for shade. There was a lot of construction at one end of the plaza. So in the summer be prepared for the hot sun

Plaza de la Merced has many reasons why people visit...first of all, the square is a nice relaxing…read morespot not far from the historic center. Then it is right by the Picasso birthplace museum and house. Also, it's full of nice open patio restaurants where people can eat or drink while doing some nice people-watching. Several gay businesses, bars and restaurants are located around this area, making it the "rainbow" section of Malaga. During late April and early May, the Jacaranda trees start blooming and the beautiful purple flowers make this a great place to visit. There's a market on Sunday mornings in the square.

The Puente Nuevo (New Bridge) is the most emblematic monument of the Malaga city of Ronda…read more Built between 1751 and 1793, until 1839 it was the highest bridge in the world with a height of 98 meters (about 300 feet). It unites the historic and modern areas of the city by crossing the Ronda tajo, a gorge excavated by the Guadalevín River. The Puente Nuevo constitutes, together with the Plaza de Toros de la Real Maestranza de Caballería de Ronda, the symbol and soul of the city. That is why it has been declared a Natural Monument of Andalusia in April 2019. We walked across it and also down the gorge to take some of the most iconic pictures of the bridge. The trek is tough with a steep uphill, but worth every minute.

This place is a definite must see if you're in the southern coast of Spain. The view from and…read morearound the bridge is just stunning. There are no admission fees, but if you want to visit the lower levels of the bridge, there is a small fee. Be aware to get here, the road can be steep, winding, and narrow. It can be a bit challenging, especially traveling at night. Located in the town of Ronda, there are plenty of restaurants in the town to try out. Numerous gift shops are also present for your wants.